Magnetic device



Dec. 26, 1961 c. D. SMITH MAGNETIC DEVICE Filed Jan. 2'7, 1958 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 l 2. 2 fr :2: a

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MAGNETIC DEVICE Filed Jan. 27, 1958 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 30 CLOYD D. SMITH INVENTOR. if .13.

ATTORNEY United States Patent ()fiice 3,014,751 Patented Dec. 26, 1961 3,014,751 MAGNETIC DEVICE Cloyd D. Smith, 8920 S. Ben Hm Ave., Whittier, Calif. Filed Ian. 27, 1958, Ser. No. 711,241 13 Claims. (Cl. 29 l--65.5)

This invention relates generally to magnetic devices and relates more particularly to permanent magnetic devices.

While the invention has particular utility in connection with permanent'magnetic devices for handling various materials and isshown and described in connection therewith, it is to be understood that its utility is not confined thereto.

One use for the invention is in the handling of sheet material and the like that is responsive to magnetic attraction, such as sheet iron, steel, or the like. Such sheet material is often stacked horizontally in piles, or may be stored generally vertically in compartments. In the horizontal arrangement the top sheet is slid onto or off the pile and it is necessary to push or pull such sheet horizontally. Where the sheets are in a generally vertical position an end sheet or an intermediately placed sheet may be pushed into or pulled from the compartment. In either event handling of such sheets may be an extremely difficult problem under certain conditions, as when the sheets are heavy and/ or of cumbersome size and/or awkward shape.

There are also situations where materials, not only sheet materials but pieces of other shapes and sizes, must be lifted up or lowered vertically;

It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a permanent magnet device adapted to facilitate handling of materialssuch as described above.

It is another object of the invention to provide a hand device of this character adapted to facilitate manually handling of materials of the above described character.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a device of this character which will readily reduce the difficulty of handling pieces of material of the above characteristics, both as to sliding or moving such pieces horizontally and as to moving same vertically.

When a piece of any such material has been moved to a desired position with the present device it is necessary to release same therefrom, and it is, therefore, a further object of the present invention to provide means for effecting release of the device from the piece of material being handled.

In many cases the pieces of material are not only awkward to handle but may be of considerable weight. As a magnetic device capable of adhering. to such materials under the forces required to move or handle same, said device must of necessity be relatively powerful so that there is a real problem in effecting release of such a device and it is a still further object of the invention to provide means whereby such powerful devices may be easily and quickly released from magnetic engagement with the piece of material being handled.

In handling other types of material which may be nonmagnetic, such as wood, plastic or the like, there are conditions whereit is desired to hold pieces of such material in a particular position for doing work on it, such as, for example, sawing it. It is, therefore, another object of the invention to. provide a permanent magnet device which may be easily, quickly and securely attached to a part of a wood working machine, such as the steel or iron bed of a power saw, for properly positioning the piece of material being worked on.

It is still another object of the invention to provide a device of this character that may be readily released from attachment to such machine bed or the like.

In such work it may be necessary to move such a positioning or guidingdevice small increments and it is a further object of the present invention to provide a device of this character whereby such fine adjustments may be easily and readily made.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a material handling permanent magnet device that is relatively simple in construction and operation.

Another object of the invention is to provide a device of this character that is relatively inexpensive to manufacture. I

The characteristics and advantages of the invention are further sufficiently referred to in connection with the following detailed description of the accompanying drawings which represent certain embodiments. After considering theseexamples, skilled persons will understand that variations may be made without departing from the principles disclosed, and I contemplate the employment of any structures, arrangements, or modes of operation that are properly within the scope of the appended claims.

Referring to the drawings:

FIG. 1 is an under side view of a magnetic materials handling device embodying. the present invention, the handle being shown extending forwardly;

FIG. 2 is a side elevation of same;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken on line 3-3 of- FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a top plan view of the device with the handle shown in section;

FIG. 5 is a side view of a magnetic element, such as a magnetic wafer, of the individual magnets used in the device; I

FIG. 6 is an end view of a plurality of the complete individual magnets arranged in side by side relationship as they are mounted in the housing of the device;

FIG. 7 is a side view of a portion of an alternative arrangement in one position; i

EIG. 8 is an under side view of a portion of said alternative arrangement;

FIG. 9 is a side view of same shown with one end re leased from a surface to which the device has been magnetically secured;

FIG. 10 is a top plan view of still another alternative arrangement;

FIG. 11 is a view of the front end thereof;

FIG. 12 is a sectional view taken on line 12-1-2 of FIG. 10, and

FIG. 13 is an under side view of a portion of the front of the device.

Referring more particularly to FIGS. 1 to 4, the device is shown as having a body, indicated generally at 18, said body comprising a housing of non-magnetic material such as aluminum or the like, said housing having a top wall 20, side walls 22 and front and rear walls 24 and 26 respectively. The top wall 20 has an elongated opening 28 therein running lengthwise of said housing, that is, toward front and rear, there being side flanges 30 and end flanges 31 dependingfrorn said top wall along the periphery of said opening. The free edge 32 of the flange 30 terminates in substantially the same plane as the free or lower edges of the side, front and rear. walls 22, 24 and 26 respectively.

Within the housing are a plurality of magnets. As shown, these magnets are arranged in sets, there being two front sets of magnets, indicated generally at 36, and two rear sets of magnets, indicated generally at 38. There is a front set of magnets at each side of the flanged opening 28 and a rear set at each side of said opening, the adjacent front and rear sets of magnets being spaced apart. I l I The magnets used are of the well-known ceramic type, each magnet, best shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, comprising a magnetized wafer 49 of known material such as Index material which is magnetized parallel to the thickness thereof. Secured to each side, by any suitable adhesive or the like, is a pole piece 44 comprising a plate of soft iron or steel. The pole pieces are slightly wider than the wafers so that the lower, longitudinal edge portions 46, the free edges 48 thereof being termed the effective edges which magnetically attach to magnetic material to be handled.

The relationship of the magnets in the assembly may be of difierent types. One type of arrangement is shown in FIG. 6 wherein like poles are together. Another arrangement may be used wherein opposite poles may be adjacent each other. Also, the individual magnets may be separated from each other or otherwise arranged. Further, the groups or sets of magnets may be arranged otherwise than as shown. It is also to be understood that other types of magnets may be used, Alnico for example being another type.

The magnets are embedded in a body of plastic material 50 of any suitable character capable of securing the magnets therein and of resisting fracturing. Plastic materials with these characteristics are known.

A handle, indicated generally at 52, is provided and includes a longitudinally extending shaft or lever 54, at least a portion of the inner end has a width a little less than the width of the opening 28 in which said portion is operably received. There is a transverse opening adjacent the inner end of said lever 54 for pivotal reception of a pivot rod 56 which is received in aligned openings provided therefor in the side flanges 30 adjacent the center of the housing. Reinforcing lugs 58 are provided at the outer sides of said flanges 34 which also have openings aligned with the openings in the flanges 3t? and in which end portions of the pivot rod 56 are received. The plastic material about the lugs serves to retain the rod 56 in position.

At the outer end of the lever 54 is a part for grasping with the hand, this part comprising a cross piece 64:, the lever 54 and cross piece 69 forming a T. Thus, when holding the device by the cross piece 6%, the effective edges of the magnets may be placed on a piece of magnetic material, such as a piece of sheet steel for example, not shown in FIG. 2 but indicated at 62 in FIG. 3. When attached to such a piece of metal, the magnets securely hold onto said piece and the latter may be pushed, pulled or lifted by means of the handle 52.

Means for effecting release of the device from the piece of material 62 is provided and comprises a cam part 66 at the free end of the lever 54. Actuation of the shaft counterclockwise, as viewed in FIGS. 2 and 3, causes the cam 66 to engage the surface of the sheet of material 62 and further counterclockwise movement will cause said cam to force the body of the device upwardly and thus force the magnets away from said sheet to a position whereat little attractive force is exerted on said sheet so that the device may be readily lifted therefrom.

The cam 66 may be variously positioned at the pivoted shaft end to effect release at various handle positions but in many cases it has been found to be highly desirable to be able to lift directly upwardly to similarly lift objects engaged by the magnets of the device. Hence, the cam 66 is positioned toward the back or upper side of the pivoted shaft end so that the handle must be actuated rearwardly beyond the vertical position (shown in dotted lines in FIG. 3) to the solid line position shown in said figure, to effect release of the device from the piece of material to which it is magnetically attached. Also, by having the handle connected to the body 18 adjacent the center thereof, the device is in substantial balance and lifting magnetically attractable articles straight upwardly is easily effected. Many diiferent types of articles to which magnets may be magnetically attached may be handled besides sheet material. Blocks of various sizes and shapes may be handled and such material may be pushed, pulled and/or lifted.

An alternative arrangement is shown in FIGS. 10 to 13 wherein the housing is modified. The opening, indicated at 2811, extends forwardly and the upper portion thereof extends through the front wall 24 as at 70, a lower portion '72 of the front wall connecting adjacent parts of the housing at opposite sides of said opening 23a. With this arrangement, the shaft of the handle 54a which is curved at the inner end so the forward end will be positioned substantially parallel to the plane of the body. Under some conditions of material handling, such an arrangement is highly desirable.

It will be seen from FIG. 12 that the effective edges db of the pole pieces are in the same plane as the lower edg of the housing. With this arrangement, lower edg of the housing tend to absorb some of the force with which the device is disposed on the surface of a piece of material to be handled but there has been found to be no appreciable interference with the power of the magnets to hold onto said material surface.

Also, it will be noted that there is a lower edge portion of the pole pieces that is not covered by the plastic material 5%. Thus, should particles be under the effective edges of the pole pieces so as to prevent said edges properly engaging the surface of material being handled, a slight slipping movement of the device on said material surface will cause said particles to be worked into the spaces about the lower edge portions of said pole pieces and allow the effective edges of the magnets to effectively and properly engage said material surface.

Referring to H68. 7, 8 and 9 there is shown an alternative arrangement wherein there is an elongated, channel shaped housing 8%, having a top wall 82 and side walls 84. One end is closed, as at 86, while at the opposite end the side walls extend forwardly of the top wall and are turned inwardly at $8 and forwardly at 90. The forwardly extending parts 90 comprise a pair of parallel ears which are spaced laterally apart and receive the adjacent end portion of a shaft 92 comprising a handle or release member. The cars 90 are provided with aligned openings therein for reception of a screw 93 on which said adjacent shaft part is pivotally mounted, said screw having a smooth portion on which the shaft pivots and a threaded end portion 94 having a securing nut 96 and a lock nut 98. The inner end of shaft 92 is curved at 108 and provided with fiat end portion 102.

There are a series of sets of magnets embedded in plastic 164, the magnets of each set being arranged transversely of the housing and the sets being spaced longitudinally therein.

The device of FIGS. 7, 8 and 9 may be used as a guide or stop means, said device being held magnetically on a top member 106, FIG. 9, by the magnets. When it is desired to release the device or adjust its position the free end 108 of shaft 92 is raised, causing the curved portion 1% to engage the top surface of said member 1% and act as a cam to force the adjacent end thereof upwardly and out of engagement with said member 106.

When the shaft 92 is substantially vertical, the flat end part 102 rests on the member 106 and is slidable thereon. The forward end of the device is still raised so that all of the magnets are disengaged from member 106 except for the rear corners of the pole pieces of the rear set. These corners rest on the member 196 and hold onto same with reduced force so that the device may be shifted. When the device is repositioned the shaft 92 is returned to a position Whereat the effective edges of all of the magnets are in engagement with the member 106 to securely hold the device in the position to which it has been moved or placed.

Should it be desired to use this type of device for pulling or pushing, or even lifting sheets disposed edge- Wise, a cross piece may be provided on the lever 92 so said lever may provide a suitable handle for said device.

While one type of permanent ceramic magnet has been shown and described herein to provide the magnetic force for the present invention, it is to be understood that various other shapes and types thereof may be used and also other types of permanent magnets may be used to provide the means for magnetic attachment to material responsive to magnetic force. There are many known types of magnets that will serve to provide such magnetic force.

While the ma nets are mounted in plastic material which in turn is disposed in a precast or preformed housing, it is to be understood that'alternatively the magnets may be cast into a casting (die cast, sand cast or otherwiselwhich comprises the housing or molded into a molded housing.

It is thought that the invention and many of its attendant advantageswill be understood from the foregoing description and it is thought that it will be apparent that various changes may be made in the form, construction and arrangement of the parts of the invention without departing from the spirit and scope thereof or sacrificing all of its material advantages, the forms hereinbefore described being merely illustrative embodiments.

I claim:

1. In a magnetic device: permanent magnet means secured in an elongated assembly and effective for magnetic attachment with magnetically attractable materials; and

lever means pivotally mounted at one end of the assembly, said lever having a handle part for actuating said lever, and a cam part adapted to be moved by the handle part to an operative position whereat said cam part engages material attached to said magnet means and forces separation of one end of the assembly from said material, leaving theopposite end of the assembly in engagement with said material, said cam part terminating in a flat part adapted to slide on said material when said one end of the assembly is separated from the material.

'2. In a magnetic device; a hollow housing open at the bottom and having a substantially central opening therein;

permanent magnet means secured within the housing and arranged operatively with respect to the open side of said housing; a lever having a pair of arms, said handle being pivotally mounted to the housing with the arms at dif- .'ferent sides of the pivotal axis of the lever, one ofsaid arms comprising a handle, the other of said arms being at least in part disposed within said central opening and adapted to be pivotally actuated downwardly when the handle arm is moved rearwardly beyond an upright position, said other arm being disposed within said opening when said handle arm is in an upright position and when said handle arm is inclined forwardly from said upright Pos io 3. Ina magnetic device: a nonmagnetic housing having an open side; pivot means carried by said housing and extending transversely thereof; a bell crank lever pivoted at the apex of its arms on said pivot means, said lever having movement in a longitudinal plane relative to housing, one arm of said lever being movable between a position whereat it is disposed within the housing and a position whereat a portion thereof extends outwardly of the open side of said housing, the other arm of said lever being positioned for actuation to thereby operably move said one arm of said lever between said positions; and permanent magnet means in said housing at each side of the plane of the lever and operably exposed at the open side of said housing for magnetic engagerrient with'magnetizable material, movement of said portio of the one arm of said lever outwardly of the open sid of said housing for effecting separating movement between the permanent magnet means and material ma netically attracted thereby at the open side of said housing.

4. In a magnetic device: a magneticassembly comprising a plurality of permanent magnets, said assembly having a work engaging sideto which magnetizable material may be magnetically attracted; means for securing said assembly together; a pivot carried by said assembly and extending transversely thereof; and a lever pivotally disposed intermediate its ends on said pivot, one arm of said lever extending from said pivot and normally positioned inoperably at one side of the plane of said work engaging side, said arm being movable between said position and a position whereat a portion thereof extends outwardly to a release position beyond the other side of the plane of said work engaging side; the other arm of said lever being positioned for operable engagement whereby the lever may be actuated to pivotally move said one arm between said positions.

5. In a magnetic device: a magnetic assembly comprising a plurality of permanent magnets, said assembly having a work engaging side to which magnetizable material may be magnetically attached, there being a space between magnets, said space being open at said assembly work side; means for securing said assembly together; a pivot carried by said assembly and extending transverse- 1y of said space; and a bell crank lever pivotally disposed at the apex of the angle of the lever arms on said pivot, one arm of said lever extending from said pivot and normally and inoperatively positioned in said space, said arm being movable between said position in said space and a release effecting position whereat a portion thereof extends outwardly of said space beyond said assembly work engaging side, the other arm of said lever comprising a handle whereby the lever may be actuated to pivotally move said one arm between said positions, said one arm being so related to handle that when the latter is in a range of movement between a position normal to said assembly of magnets and a position inclined forwardly thereof the one arm is in an inoperative position and pulling and pushing movement in a plane generally parallel to the work engaging side may be imparted to said device by means of said handle to correspondingly pull and push material to which said device is magnetically attached, but is moved to a release effecting position when said handle is moved to a position inclined rearwardly from said position normal to said assembly.

6. The invention defined by claim 5, wherein said one arm has a cam surface engageable with material attached to the work engaging side of said assembly when said one arm is moved to a release effecting position.

7. In a magnetic device: a magnetic assembly comprising a plurality of permanent magnets, s'aid assembly having a work-engaging side to which magnetizable material may be magnetically attached, there being a space in said assembly, said space being open at the Workengaging side of said assemblyjmeans for securing said posite the work-engaging side, said handle portion of the lever being movable between a work position substantially inclined toward one end of the assembly from a position normal to the plane of the work side thereof and a release position whereat said handle is inclined from said normal position at the opposite side thereof, said cam carrying portion of the lever, when handle is in said work position, being disposed within said. space, said device being movable in a plane generally parallel to the plane of the work side for pushing and pulling material to which said device is magnetically attached, said cam carrying portion of the lever also being in an inoperative position within said space when said handle is in said position substantially normal to the plane of said work side; and when said lever is moved to the release position said cam is moved outwardly of said space beyond said assembly work-engaging side to thereby forceably separate the assembly and material.

8. In a magnetic device: a magnetic assembly comprising a plurality of permanent magnets, said assembly having a Work-engaging side to which magnetizable mai said 'terial may be magnetically attached, and a lever pivotally tion, the other portion of said lever being of substantially greater length than the release-effecting portion to provide a handle portion projecting from the side of the assembly opposite the work-engaging side, said handle portion of the lever being movable between a work position inclined to one side of a position normal to the workengaging side thereof and a release position whereat said handle is inclined at the opposite side of said normal position, the release-effecting portion of the lever, when said handle is in said work position, being disposed in outwardly spaced inoperative relation to the plane of said work-engaging side so that said assembly may have pushing and pulling movement, said release-effecting portion of the lever also being in an inoperative position when said handle is in a position substantially normal to said work-engaging side whereat the assembly may be lifted and lowered vertically; and when said lever is moved to the release position said release-effecting portion of the lever is moved beyond said assembly work engaging side.

9. In a magnetic device: a magnetic assembly comprising a plurality of permanent magnets, said assembly having a work-engaging side to which magnetizable material may be magnetically attached, there being a space between magnets, said space being open at said assembly work side; a pivot carried by said assembly and extending transversely of said space; and a bell crank lever pivotally disposed at its apex on said pivot, one arm of said lever extending from said pivot and normally and inoperatively positioned in said space, said arm being movable between said position in said space and a release effecting position whereat a portion thereof extends outwardly of said space beyond said assembly work-engaging side, the other arm of said lever comprising a handle whereby the lever may be actuated to pivotally move said one arm between said positions, said one arm being so related to handle that when the latter is in a range of movement between a position normal to said assembly of magnets and a position inclined forwardly thereof the one arm is in an inoperative position, but is moved to a release-effecting position when said handle is moved to a position inclined rearwardly from said position normal to the plane of said Work-engaging side.

10. In a magnetic material handling device; a magnetic assembly comprising a plurality of permanent magnets, said assembly having magnetically eflective portions in a plane of a work-engaging side, to which magnetizable material may be magnetically attached; a pivot carried by said assembly; and a lever pivotally mounted on said pivot and having a short release-eifecting end portion and a long end portion providing a handle, said lever having a position whereat the handle portion is disposed at an acute angle relative to the plane of the work-engaging side and the short portion of said lever is disposed outwardly of said plane, said device then being adapted to be pushed and pulled back and forth by an operator holding said handle, said lever being movable to a position substantially normal to the plane of said work-engaging side with the short portion still spaced outwardly of said plane so that said assembly may be raised and lowered vertically, said handle being movable to a predetermined position at the opposite side of said normal position whereat the shorter portion of said lever will project beyond the plane of said work-engaging side to thereby eflect separation of the assembly and material to which said assembly is magnetically attached.

11. In a magnetic material handling device: a magnetic assembly comprising a housing open at a workengaging side; a plurality of permanent magnets operably mounted in said housing and having magnetically effective portions in a plane at said work-engaging side to which magnetizable material may be magnetically attached; a pivot carried by said assembly; and a lever pivotally mounted on said pivot and having a releaseeflfecting end portion at the side of the pivot ad acent the work engaging side of the magnetic assembly and an end portion providing a handle, said lever having a work position substantially normal to the plane of said work-engaging side with the release-effecting portion spaced outwardly of said plane so that said device, with material magnetically attached thereto, may be raised and lowered vertically, said lever having another work position whereat the handle portion is disposed at one side of said work position and relatively close to the plane of the work-engaging side, the release-elfecting portion of said lever is disposed outwardly of said plane and said assembly and material magnetically attached thereto is movable back and forth by an operator holding said handle, said handle also being movable to a predetermined position at the opposite side of said normal position whereat the release-effecting portion of said lever will project beyond the plane of said work-engaging side to thereby effect separation of the assembly and material to which said assembly is magnetically attached.

12. In a magnetic material handling device: a magnetic assembly comprising a plurality of permanent magnets operably secured together, said magnets having magnetically effective portions in a work-engaging plane at one side of said assembly to which magnetizable material may be magnetically attached; and a lever operably attached to said assembly, said lever having a release-efiecting end portion and a handle portion, said lever being movable and having a plurality of positions, including a lifting position whereat said lever is positioned substantially normal to the plane of said work-engaging side with the release-effecting portion spaced outwardly of said plane so that said device may be raised and lowered vertically with material magnetically attached thereto, a push and pull position whereat the handle portion is disposed at one side of said lifting position and adjacent to the plane of the work-engaging side, the release-effecting portion of said lever being disposed outwardly of said plane, and said assembly and material magnetically attached thereto being movable back and forth by an operator holding said handle, and a releaseeffecting position whereat the release-effecting portion of said lever will project beyond the plane of said workengaging side to thereby effect separation of the assembly and material to which said assembly is magnetically attached.

13. In a magnetic material handling device: a magnetic assembly comprising a plurality of permanent magnets, said assembly having a work-engaging side to which magnetizable material may be magnetically attached, there being a space in said assembly, said space being open at the work side of said assembly; means for securing said assembly together; a pivot carried by said assembly and a lever pivotally disposed on said pivot, one portion of said lever at one side of said pivot being disposed in said space, and the other portion of said lever being positioned for ready actuation, said other portion of the lever being movable between an inoperative position whereat said one end of the lever is disposed in said space and a release position whereat said one portion of the lever is moved outwardly of said space beyond said assembly work-engaging side to thereby forceably separate the assembly and material to which said assembly is magnetically attached.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,615,746 Fischer Oct. 28, 1952 2,751,525 Hekelaar June 19, 1956 2,954,257 Besuch et a1. Sept. 27, 1960 

